Rune Factory 4 was part of a shift away from the mechanic, with Harvest Moon franchise games typically all turning to the "going steady" option players face penalization for deciding to "harem" and face far more difficulties trying to romance multiple romantic options. Earlier Harvest Moon and Rune Factory games allowed the player to potentially romance all the available love interests to the point of proposal with no penalty, and fans would often "harem" to see all the romantic cutscenes, wedding scenes, after-marriage dialogue, etc.Likely a way to counter the fact that the entirety of Leon Karnak/The Forest Of Beginnings must be done in one swoop with no means of saving in-between. After a fight against Rafflesia, the two Anubi statues and Sarcophagus himself are pitifully easy to defeat, even without filling up on potential healing items. Anti-Climax Boss: The final bosses of the First Arc of the game certainly feel like this.
Does he truly support Lest/Frey and care about their well being, or is he only supporting them due to their status as the prince/ss of Selphia? While most of the game leans towards the former interpretation, the prologue and the Town Event "Someone Has the Wrong Idea" appear to hint at the latter. Alternate Character Interpretation: Volkanon.